Well, to my thing that made me make the thread then...
Do you remember that this game is called Trials in Tainted Space? Well, we got 'Taint' a while ago, but what we did not get yet is 'Tainted Space'. Because surprisingly, the game does, in a trowawayline, actually state what 'Tainted Space' is! On the most optional place of the game, Canadia station, there is Kally, our bartender of choice for all not mead-related drinks. And cum.
Kally got some tougths about most places, the usuall things, New Texas is terrifying, Tarkus is a dump... But there is a line that actually stands out!
“Any thoughts on that Mhen’ga world?”
Shuddering, Kally nods sadly. “I’ve got a lot of thoughts on that world, like how we’re ruining it one step at a time. Aside from trampling over the native peoples and their customs, a whole lot of non-native species have already moved in. Luckily, the planet’s jungles seem to do a good job of keeping down the invaders, but cunt snakes grow like weeds there. I even heard there are zil infested with five or six of the things. If it gets much worse, the UGC is liable to classify the whole system as Tainted Space and require rigorous decontamination protocols for anyone who wants to leave.”
As one can see, Tainted Space is a concept actually different from the taint in game, and this pice of dialog is maybe just a left over pice of a different time, but if one thinks about it: It makes sence. We actually got one place that does genuinely fit the discription of 'Tainted Space', our halloween-event,
The Kashima Incident.
That, funnily, is also one of the ways to get to Canadia.
But what did we learn of Kallys line: Tainted Space contains alterants, for example parasites, that are problematic enogth that to stop their spread, one would actually close up the system, blockade it, put it in quarantine and only let you in and out with paperwork and scans that would make Uveto blush.
More evidence that 'Tainted Space' has nothing to do with the genetical Taint and is more underlined by Parasites, as they seem to be the most common cause of 'Tainted Space', given their abiletys to survive without a host for some times and manipulate their hosts mind to a extend, and what V-Ko has to say if you go to let one get removed:
You slowly sit up. There’s some dizziness but it fades by the time you get upright. True to V-Ko’s word, the anesthetics are wearing off almost immediately. You recall her mentioning payment for healing her earlier. “Excuse me, shouldn’t this cost some money?”
V-Ko helps you down off the table. “There is no charge. Flahne has authorized me to deduct the requisite fees from this planet’s health and wellness budget, paid for by local business taxes. Parasitism is taken very seriously across U.G.C. space and fully 90% of the member planets offer free treatments to remove them.”
90% offer compleatly free treatment for parasite removal. That underlines the underlying danger that they represent.
Thanks to the addition of the buttbugs, every more or less finished Main-Stop of Steeles travel got parasites.
Mhen'Ga got two, the Mimbrans that can take, is enmassed, full controll of a host and the Cuntsnakes, who got imported and maybe will permanently mark the planet as tainted, if Snugglé does not burn the jungle down first...
Tarkus got their bugs, bad enogth to place a warningsign, (I know that that is a contentwarning, but we are In Universe thinking right now) even trough there are many more things that deserve a warningsing by themself. But it is only the parasite that gets deemed important enogth to warn you of, even if you did just rush past people directly into the waste to explore and exploit.
Myrellion got the Cockvines, and no matter how fucked up that planet is, ploitical, literal, however one wants to see it... Their local Parasitic Organism is probably the least dangerous of the ones out there.
Uveto and New Texas, being coreworlds and optional content, do not have parasites. They are safe places, non-Tainted Space.
Zeng-Hu is not finished yet, and besides them being a piratbase and not a planet, there may is a Parasite hidded in it allready. Afterall, it is a asteroid-mine, and the Kashima did catch their 'Taint' in a simelar way. I am sure a parasite will be added to the place sooner or later...
But the funny thing is...
All planets of the Rush we did see allready could reasonable be declared 'Tainted Space' if their problems escalate.
The whole Rush Space is in the risk of becoming declared 'Tainted Space'.
